I GAVE MY MOM A CASTLE

This is an engaging package: small poems, most about giving and receiving, with the immediacy of a movie and the energy of a random conversation. They are well-matched by Denton’s lively, supercharged drawings, in black-and-white or blue-and-white line and shadow, which capture the spirit and the movement of each poem. The longest are two or three pages; many are shorter. In “The Bulb,” a prickly teenager called Mary encounters why her Gran actually named her Amaryllis; in “The Melon,” a girl carves her little brother’s name in a watermelon that delights him when it’s served. In “Loving an Elf,” an older sister explains how much easier it is to love her little sister now that she’s not quite so cute. Children from toddlers to teens are the voices in these poems, and what is given and received often involves siblings and parents. Quite enjoyable. (Poetry. 9-12)